TOPIC: Breaking Bad

This show just keeps impressing. It's so refreshing to see something so different and captivating. Everything in the show is impeccable.

The writing is so well done, it keeps you guessing and wondering what will happen next. Just when you think you know what is going to happen it makes a turn, it surprises you. It makes you hate a character one second and feel compassion for them the next. You just don't find much better writing than this.

The filmmaking is top notch. The camera movement is always creative and on the move. Creative lighting and staging are always at play as well. You can tell that there is a vision and that everyone is working together to make it happen.

Finally the acting is so well crafted that I'm constantly impressed. You can tell that the actors have an appreciation for the quality of filmmaking and they are bringing their best. You can see that they respect each other as well and every single character is bringing their A game.

It's rare that a television series can maintain its focus for the entire length of its run but this show has never let off. They keep raising the bar, keep finding way to be creative, and do a great job of making it easy to watch. It's not a show to miss and I'll be very sad when it's over.

I couldn't agree more! With the ridiculous drama the show could easily be so over the top, and step into the soap opera stage. The writers have found the perfect line to cross between keeping the audience on their toes and staying believable. The actors are absolutely impeccable! Like the plot lines, their character breakdowns allow them to go as crazy and as big with their personas as they want and no one could judge them for it, yet they minimize the big things that allow the audience to be brought in to the room as opposed to just witnessing the breakdowns. There has never been better television!

There is no doubt that Breaking Bad is one of the best, most popular series of our generation. It is not often that there is a show that has absolutely everyone talking -- but this one does. After watching The Sopranos from start to finish, I didn't think I would ever see another show as good as that. However, I gave Breaking Bad a shot (the whole high school teacher cooks meth seemed like an appealing plot line), and fell in love. Although has been a phenomenal series so far (without much disappointment), the finale (premiering tonight) will conclude whether or not it was what we think it is. Lots of great shows, unfortunately, have very unfulfilling conclusions. I am really hoping that this isn't one of them.

Oh boy, I have had this conversation with many of my peers, and this being my first one with a stranger, I hope you can not take this post personally.

I like Breaking Bad, but I don't love it. I appreciate Season 5, but seasons 1-4 have been similar to a bad trip to the dentist. As a film major, I find more flaws than material that I can value as superb filmmaking. For television, sure, it does its purpose, but in every aspect of the filmmaking process, it makes me uneasy having to watch art half empty rather than half full. Now I see that it's being critically acclaimed as one of the best shows to ever hit television, I truly think it has way more potential. Season 5-- they use way better cinematography with the time lapses that should have signatured from season 1 and on. Given that it is the last season, the actors have shown a more relaxed demeanor and thus has effected their performance to improve. If cliche is your thing, then yes, this show is the best my eyes have ever seen, but for the last posting to have compared Breaking Bad to The Sopranos, I must defend the art of David Chase.

What about The X Files? Friends? Seinfeld? Lost? Entourage?

These are shows that were well done and equally entertaining, with characters that didn't flip flop from season to season. Of course, Walter White is my favorite, but he would be sooooo much better if he had better supporting characters around him. Now, lets start with his family: Walter Jr. or Flynn= horrible acting, horrible character traits and only wants me to fast forward because he has not carried the story any further. Mostly though, his wife, makes waxing my chest hairs more suitable than having to deal with her moods. She has been an nuisance ever since season 1, not one redeemable act that has carried her character to be the actor she needs to be for Walter White to truly shine. I am truly not here to sound sexist, but she makes me sick. I'd rather not even keep talking of her because I feel like it is a waste of time.

The formalist approach of Gus' death was hard for me to buy. There have been plenty of artistic choice that I have had to shake my head at and critique because after all- it is within my career to really separate art from footage. The shows flaws would all be forgiven if the episodes were much shorter. The spin of Italian Neorealism is something I appreciate within the show, but is not necessary for television. They try to make it way more than it needs to be, and that is where I disagree with most of America. Yes, I am only 9 episodes away from finishing the show, in order to just obtain the knowledge of the show, but I will admit this show has not been a pleasant journey. Film is about the journey, and this journey has been minimally pleasant.

All I can say is that Gale's death was the only true moment Breaking Bad made me FEEL anything as an audience member.